There is a difference in quality and in the manufacturing of the cables, but the price ranges are really just exaggerated in my opinion: just capitalism at work. Did you hear about the $1000 a meter HDMI cable? It was in a ZDnet blog once:

The difference it seems is the throughput. While a bit is a bit, the speed of the bit (or the quantity transmitted in a given timeframe) is what is important. The more bits you try to push through a cable, the more likely it is that there will be interference, problems with transmission (data corruption), and so on.

There are different HDMI standards from HDMI 1.0 to HDMI 1.4. And they vary by the amount of data you can get through the cable.

But here's the interesting part: even the oldest HDMI cable (HDMI 1.0 standard) should be able to run a TV at 1920x1200 at 60Hz with no problem. So as long as a cable is really an HDMI cable, it should be OK. All the other stuff is just extra.

Who has a 3840×2400 (WQUXGA) TV? I don't. But maybe down the road I might, and then I'll buy a higher rated (and more expensive) HDMI cable.